(WSVN) - A South Florida man has taken a typical daily jog and he’s run with it. 7’s Karen Hensel catches up with him in this week 7 Spotlight.
Under the morning sun and night sky, through neighborhoods and sandy beaches, step by step, mile by mile, no matter the day, week or month, this is a man on a mission.
Mika Shevit: “Nothing stops me, absolutely nothing.”
Meet Mika Shevit, a Sunny Isles Beach resident and running powerhouse.
Mika Shevit: “Every single day since April 1st, 2021, I’ve run a complete half marathon: 13.1 miles, seven days a week.”
You heard that right. Mika has completed a half marathon every day for more than a year.
Mika has logged more than 5,000 miles. That distance is the equivalent of running from Miami to Los Angeles and nearly back across the country again.
Mika Shevit: “Which is mind-boggling, but you can’t think about it like that. You have to just do one run at a time, and then you have to recover.”
But when you’re lacing up every day, recovery time is limited.
The 47-year-old runs in the evening or early in the morning. It takes him about two hours to complete the 13.1 miles.
But for Mika, it’s about endurance, not speed.
Mika Shevit: “The main reason I could run every single day is because I don’t overthink the run. It’s like brushing your teeth.”
But his first two attempts at running every day both ended with injuries on Day 75. The third time was the charm.
Three weeks ago, Mika hit the magic number: 365.
Mika Shevit: “It was amazing. It was one of the greatest days of my life.”
The moment, plus selfies from his daily runs, are posted on Instagram, and all of his run times and routes are recorded on an app.
Mika Shevit: “It’s all completely documented.”
Earlier this month, with his family by his side, Mika’s accomplishment was recognized by the city commission.
Sunny Isles Beach Vice Mayor Jeniffer Viscarra: “Now, instead of saying ‘Be like Mike,’ in Sunny Isles Beach we say ‘Be like Mika.'”
Mika Shevit: “Why? Well, first of all, I wanted to get in shape for myself, and I wanted to do something just way out there to prove to my kids that hard work really can take you so far.”
Mika Shevit’s hard work is set to take him to half marathon Day 400 on May 5. For more on his runs and routes through South Florida cities, click here or go to his Instagram page.
And if there is someone or something you think we should know about, send us an email at 7spotlight@wsvn.com. We’d love to hear from you.
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